a happy blog full of sugar, spice and hello kitty nice

Tag: egg dishes

The popular coffee shop that has two locations in Long Beach and a location in Laguna Hills has now hit Torrance!

There’s nothing like having some freshly brewed artisan coffee to kick off the weekend and that’s just what I did on a fine Friday that marked the end of the work week.

Steelhead Coffee’s location in Torrance is cute and small. It’s located at the lobby of the office of the Daily Breeze Newspaper. With a very minimalistic design, I could definitely see how this would be a great place to simply enjoy a warm cup of coffee.

Their menu consists of drip coffee, cold brew, cortado, lattes and cappuccinos. One can add vanilla, lavender, caramel and chocolate to their drinks too.

I found their caramel latte to be so smooth. It was not too rich but yet perfect for a slightly sweet kick to start off the morning.

I instantly became a fan of their almond croissant. With its crispy, flaky skin on the outside topped with sliced almonds and almond paste in the inside; this croissant was the perfect pairing for my caramel latte.

The food offerings doesn’t stop however with bread and pastries because there is more at Steelhead Coffee! The Steelhead Kitchen offers a variety of freshly made hot dishes such as congee, avocado bread and even a Steelhead burger!

I got to try their congee and was amazed at all the wonderful ingredients in the bowl. The rice porridge had fresh persian cucumber, kimchi, sriracha mixed in toasted sesame and soy sauce and topped with soft-boiled egg. It was definitely one of the most special rice porridges I’ve ever seen or had!

It is no surprise Steelhead Coffee has been such a hit in their first three locations. From their sweet sips to their savory treats; one is sure to smile and have a an amazing start to the day!

For more smiles; please see my latest Yelp review on Steelhead Coffee Torrance.

Happy Easter Hello Kitty Foodies! Easter is more than just eggs and candy. It is also about peace, love, family and friends. For this easter not only my tummy full but my heart as well as I got to enjoy a wonderful brunch with my mom at Restoration Kitchen and Wine in Old Torrance, California.

The brunch menu at Restoration Kitchen and Wine just arrived this February. When I heard they were offering brunch, I knew I had to check it out. I had previously dined for dinner at Restoration Kitchen and Wine and was utterly delighted with their savory dishes. I knew brunch would nonetheless be equal in excellence.

Signature dishes on their brunch menu include classics such as french toast, corned beef hash and steak and eggs. There also some special Restoration dishes named after their wonderful staff such as Becca’s Scramble with 3 eggs, sausage, tomatoes, kale, cheddar cheese and multi grain toast (named after their Kitchen manager, Rebecca Foley) and Wes’ Turkey Sandwich with yuzu mayo, sprouts and multi grain bread (named after co-owner Wesley Takiguchi). Though primarily breakfast egg dishes do appear on their brunch menu; they do have several items also seen on their dinner menu such as their Furikake Fries, Wild Mushroom Flatbread and Slow Roasted Beet Salad. For my Easter Brunch, I chose to do a mix of their brunch items and some of their dinner dishes.

Easter brunch started off with an order of their Furikake Fries.

The Furikake Fries are sprinkled with nori komi furikake. The seasoning of mixed sesame seeds and crunchy seaweed bits was definitely a nice touch. The fries were crisp and had great flavor. It also came with a wonderful side of wasabi aioli. The wasabi aioli was unique, tasty and great for dipping. It had subtle wasabi flavor but enough to give a different kick to the aioli.

The fries were a great starter to what followed next. The brunch menu’s savory dish selection is excellent and one is in for a treat with any of their items.

Their signature selection includes different hash dishes.

There is the Corned Beef Hash.

This hearty dish consists of corned beef, carrots, cabbage, onions and potatoes topped with a sunny side egg. It also comes with multi-grain toast. Who says corned beef is just for St. Patty’s day?

The other hash dish on the menu is the Short Rib Hash.

The Short Rib Hash is definitely my new brunch favorite. The short rib was perfectly tender and meaty and went well with the butternut squash, green onions, tomatoes and potatoes that it came with. Similar to the corned beef hash, it was also topped with a sunny side egg and accompanied with a multi-grain toast.

For meat lovers, the classic Steak and Eggs on the menu would be the perfect choice.

Restoration Kitchen and Wine’s Steak and Eggs comes with an 8 oz choice NY steak, two eggs, breakfast potatoes and multi-grain toast. Dinner for breakfast or breakfast for dinner? This is one very fulfilling dish!

From Furkiake Fries to Short Rib Hash and NY Steak and Egg, our tummies sure were full but so were our hearts!

Each savory dish almost made us too full for dessert but who can pass up a new sweet dish on the menu.

Their Strawberry Shortcake just recently hit the menu and it is a must try for every one who has a sweet tooth.

This delightful dessert has house made honey biscuits topped with lemon cream, fresh strawberries, vanilla ice cream. Each bite was pure heaven.

It was a wonderful morning to spend Easter brunch at Restoration Kitchen and Wine. Blessings and brunch; I could not ask for more on this beautiful day.

I have a confession to make…I have a new crush. He’s not one you’d think would normally be my type. He’s lazy, unmotivated and always feels blah. Nevertheless he’s a cutie and he’s captured my heart. Who exactly is my new crush…well it’s no other than Gudetama, the lazy egg, Sanrio’s newest character!

At the end of October, I happily wrote a post about the upcoming collaboration between Plan Check Kitchen and Bar and Sanrio where Plan Check would be offering a special menu featuring Gudetama. Ever since I wrote that blog post, I’ve been eagerly awaiting the day I would get to try this special menu featuring the oh so cute Gudetama. I fully intended to eat my crush up! Haha.

I saw Gudetama just lying around (He’s probably contemplating his fate of being eaten by his many fans! Haha!)

I saw him cracking jokes! (He’s probably trying to make the best of his fate of being eaten by laughing! It’s always better to laugh than cry!) 😜

I even saw good ol’ Gudetama inside the restaurant watching all his fans who came to eat him! 😉

I apparently am not the only one with a crush on this lazy egg because there sure were a lot of people at Plan Check Kitchen and Bar ordering the specially developed Gudetama-inspired menu.

I was all decked out in Hello Kitty gear that day but the server knew instantly that I was there for Gudetama and she quickly took my order.

Soon enough I was presented the first egg-licious delight via a orange-ginger egg cream soda.

On top of this drink is white foam that is made from egg whites. The color of the soda is nice sunny color that looks like yolk. This is a drink that ginger fans would enjoy because I tasted the hint of ginger right from the start. The orange gives a nice citrus flavor that balances out the ginger but ginger is definitely what is prominent in this drink. It is different and unique, just like Gudetama!

The next item that was the served was the appetizer for this multi-course meal. The starter consists of crispy blanket egg, soy sauce egg, spicy pork belly sausage and miso aioli.

I loved this appetizer right from the start. The golden brown panko crust on the outside was perfectly crisp! The miso aioli was all around.

Slicing into it, I could just hear the crunch! Once sliced, I loved the layers of egg and spicy pork belly sausage. This dish is supposed to represent Gudetama, sleeping in a crispy warm blanket. Sorry to disturb your sleep, Gudetama but I was hungry and you were too delicious not to eat up! 😉

Next up after the starter is the main course consisting of two beef sliders with sunny fried quail egg, cheese two ways, bacon two ways, ketchup leather and hot sauce.

These sliders have to be the cutest sliders I have ever seen. The sunny fried quail egg has Gudetama’s face.

I’m going to admit, I was a little sad staring at that face. It was almost as if Gudetama was saying “Don’t eat me, I am your cutie crush.”

I felt a slight sadness slicing into my slider (and gasp saying goodbye to my egg friend) but my sadness was soon surpassed with delight because the sliders were delicious. Plan Check is famous for their burgers and these sliders is a good indication of why. The meat in the sliders were prepared just right. The beef was perfectly cooked and the bacon was crispy. The cheese and ketchup leather brought lots of flavor. There was hot sauce but the spice was subtle. These sliders were very fulfilling.

Last but definitely not least to this multi-course meal was the dessert. The dessert set consisted of chocolate custard pudding and an apricot thumbprint cookie.

The apricot thumbprint cookie looks like a Gudetama over easy egg. This cute egg looking cookie was my favorite of the two desserts. It had a nice shortbread flavor and the apricot in the middle was a sweet touch.

The chocolate pudding though was not far behind this cookie in terms of making an impression on me. I simply adored the Gudetama design on top. It reminded me of coffee foam art. I found myself actually going around the design and eating around the corners first. Any one who loves chocolate will like this because the pudding was full of rich chocolate creaminess.

It was truly a pleasure for this Hello Kitty Foodie to meet err eat Gudetama! Gudetama makes me smile and this lazy egg will always be in my heart err on my sleeve (since my my meal came with an exclusive Gudetama Plan Check t-shirt).

For more smiles, please see my recent Yelp review on Plan Check Kitchen and Bar.

Just last week as I was out in LA, I saw a bright yellow ad! What could that ad be, I thought to myself? Upon closer look, it was to much delight that I discovered it was an ad for Gudetama! Gudetama, is Sanrio’s cute lazy egg character! I should have known that sighting of the lazy egg that night was a sign of egg-cellent things to come…..

Perhaps seeing that ad hat night was indeed a sign because sure enough, there is some egg-cllent and egg-citing things coming to LA!

Last Fall Plan Check Kitchen + Bar was one of the restaurants part of Hello Kitty Hungry Hunt. This year Plan Check is once again partnering with Sanrio to bring LA’s Hello Kitty foodies something to smile about. Plan Check and Sanrio have come together for a special promotion featuring Gudetama, the lazy egg.

During the Hello Kitty Hungry Hunt, Plan Check Kitchen + Bar offered a Hello Kitty bento box. This year for their Gudetama special, they are offering once again one yummy and cute meal!

Inspired by the lazy egg, Executive Chef Ernesto Uchimura has come up with menu featuring a variety of egg dishes. It will be multi-course menu. First course includes a crispy blanket egg, soy sauce egg, spicy pork belly sausage and miso aioli. This will than followed by Gudetama sliders; two beef sliders that will be topped with a sunny fried quail egg, cheese, bacon, ketchup and hot sauce. Last but definitely not least are some sweet treats consisting of a chocolate custard pudding, an apricot thumbprint cookie and an orange-ginger egg cream soda.

Not only will Hello Kitty Foodies get to eat a egg-licious meal, they will also get a sweet treat with their meal. The meal will come with a limited edition Gudetama t-shirt.

Some lucky foodies, may even get a surprise during their visit! Gudetama will be making special restaurant appearances throughout the month.

The multi-course Gudetama x Plan Check menu will be available for $39. This special will start October 30 and run through November 29th, Gudetama will take over all three locations of Plan Check Kitchen + Bar in the Fairfax, Sawtelle, and Downtown neighborhoods of Los Angeles.

Being a foodie, I love Gudetama! Eggs go well with anything! Whether sunny side up, scrambled or boiled, eggs are egg-cellent and delightful! I am super egg-cited for this promo! The Plan Check Kitchen and Bar Gudetama special will be sure to bring many smiles! (A lazy egg in your food and a smile on your face is coming!) ☺️🍳